Family Afflicted
by LilyGhost
Summary: Stephanie's dinner in the Burg leads to a few revelations and decisions. A Ranger POV story.


**All familiar characters belong to Janet. Mistakes are mine. I want to say a quick 'Thank You' to reviewers, guest reviewers, and those who just enjoy reading my stories. While I can't say I'd stop writing even if I knew no one's reading what I post, you all help motivate me to keep at it. **

"You might as well just tell me what's bugging you, Babe. I'm not leaving until you do."

I had politely let myself into her apartment for a well-check visit without bothering her with the question of if I should or not. I knew she was due to have dinner at her parents' house. And though these Burg-evenings have become less frequent ... the mood Stephanie's in after those she attends, have increased in severity. When I called to see how she's feeling, I wasn't reassured by her tone.

Not one to allow problems to take root, especially when it comes to my Babe, I drove here, essentially broke in, and found her sitting on her couch with a pint of Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Therapy in the process of melting as it sat on her coffee table.

That her ice cream is housing a spoon, the largest one she owns I noted, is extremely telling in how her night had gone. That she's been ignoring it completely is likely the biggest red flag she could wave. I threw a throw pillow out of my way and sat down next to her after tossing my keys beside what Steph usually considers the universal problem-solver that comes in a convenient carton.

"That's not as big of a threat as you'd like it to be," she finally said. "I'm used to living here, _you're _the one who'll be feeling punished by staying in my apartment longer than you absolutely have to."

"You have a point. So spare me the pain of having no toaster to use and little-to-no hot water if we feel the need to shower, and tell me why you're letting your ice cream turn into cream of chocolate soup."

"I guess I should go put that away."

"I'll do it. That will give you three seconds to get yourself ready to talk." I valiantly put her coping mechanism back in the freezer instead of just throwing it out, and then I rejoined her on the couch. "_Well _...?"

"It just hit me tonight that if I got serious about someone ... they'd be stuck not only with me on my bad days ... but with my family on the days when they're purposely at their worst."

The subject of her family needs to be addressed, but a more important question needed to be asked before anything else.

"Are you considering committing to a serious relationship with someone? And before you answer that ... I promise it won't be a pleasant, or quick, ending for the man if _I'm _not who you're referring to."

"Do you _want _it to be you? And before _you _answer that ... keep in mind my original concern. If you and I are in a ride or die relationship, you'd have to put up with my family."

"Your parents are a non-issue to me. Grandma Mazur does raise some concern, but not for the same reasons as Helen and Frank. Let me make an educated guess here, your mother spent three-quarters of the evening making snide remarks, derogatory comments, and thinly-veiled threats about her impending interference, regarding 'reports' of you and I spending more and more time together?"

"Yeah, which was partly my fault. I shouldn't have let her get to me when she began her spiel about how little I mean to you. My knee jerk defense of us involved pointing out that dinners with you, that sometimes even includes your family, are the reason I wasn't going to hers."

"Are you ashamed of me, my background, my reputation, or of my relatives?" I had to ask.

"Definitely not. I'm completely ashamed of mine, though."

I slid my fingers into her curls and made her look at me. I lowered my voice so she'd pay closer attention.

"You are _not _who made you, Babe."

Her eyes stayed synced to mine. "I tell myself something along those lines every couple of hours, but some days they know exactly which button on my 'lose it' board to lean on. Don't make fun of me for saying this, but nights like this one have me feeling like maybe there's some type of virus lying dormant in the genes they passed onto me. And at just the right time that's beneficial to them ... it suddenly wakes up and starts to infect me, making me act as crazy as they are until I get away from them and get it under control again."

"They can't destroy you unless you let them."

"I'm trying not to. That's why my car's been skirting Chambersburg. But I realized as I was sitting here, the longer I stay away from the Burg and my mom, the harder my emotions and my mood get sucker punched the next time I do enter my parents' house, Tasty Pastry, the bonds office ..."

"You gave yourself the solution. Just _don't _see her or the Burg again."

"So I can spend even more of my time with you?" She asked.

"So _you _can stay feeling like _yourself_ first and foremost. More time together I consider my bonus."

"How do you always know what to say to fix things?"

"I just know and understand you. And believe me when I say _ashamed _is NOT what I feel when I think of you."

"What _do _you feel ... aside from what obviously presses into me when you haul me close and kiss me?"

"I love everything about you, Steph. I've never kept that information from you."

"You haven't, have you?"

"No. I can up the ante even more by saying next time you feel like torturing yourself by accepting a dysfunctional-dinner invite, I'll be going as your date. Any issue they have with me, they can take up with me directly and leave you out of it."

She cut her eyes to me and proceeded to, without speaking, gauge my obvious loss of sanity, which gave me a chance to say something I've been wanting to.

"Your mother doesn't get the right to run or ruin your life just because she and your father got pregnant. You've put in too many years as it is trying to overcompensate for being the 'disappointment' your mother has done her damnedest to make you feel like. But, Steph, you aren't anything of the kind. You're allowed to be happy even if Helen continues to choose to stay miserable. You claim I'm the best at everything, but a large part of my success is due to surrounding myself with uniquely skilled people. To be the woman I'd kill and live for, means you aren't any of the things your mother tries to manipulate you into being. You don't have to believe everything I say, but please feel and see the truth in at least that."

She remained silent for a few more beats, and what she chose to say wasn't the subject I thought she'd willingly return to.

"You _are _the man I'm getting _dead serious _about ... almost faster than I'm ready for. I _am_ ready though ... and that made me panic a little. I was picturing my mom sabotaging our relationship before it has a chance to go from electric to epic. It's also possible my dad would break his no-talking rule during dinner just to say something offensive that would have you thinking twice about sticking with me."

"I don't care what anyone else thinks about me. I know who I am. No one's opinion or ignorance can change or shake that."

"Can you teach me how to be like that?" She asked. "I can only manage to sound completely confident when I'm being a sarcastic smartass."

It makes me sad and also really pissed off that she'd ever doubt what a special human being she is, or not realize that she's the kind of woman any man would kill to call theirs. I know _I'll_ kill any man that doesn't see that she's _mine _already.

"I can give you a few pointers," I told her, "but more importantly ... I'll spend a lot more of my time reminding you of what a sexy, amazing, intelligent, caring, woman you are. That way if someone unwisely says otherwise, you'll automatically remember that there isn't a shred of truth in any of that bullshit."

That promise got a genuine smile out of her and she dared to move in closer and knock down the last boundary standing between the two of us. She draped an arm across my midsection and rested her ponytailed-head on my chest.

"It should terrify me how much I like the sound of those plans," she said into my pec, "but right now they and you are just making me really happy. What you said got me thinking even more."

I became even more interested than usual in what's going on in her mind, because she slowly sat up and her lips are suddenly brushing mine as she continued to speak.

"Next time my mom calls and tries to guilt me into showing up for dinner, I'll let her harass my voicemail and treat you to dinner, followed by a leisurely breakfast, over in Philadelphia instead."


End file.
